


Lessons In Being Human

by holyhuntress



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angel!Reader, Angsty at a few parts, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Kevin lives yayay, Post-Fallen Angels, Reader-Insert, just a tad different, not much changes really
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2015-07-05
Packaged: 2018-04-05 13:14:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4181151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/holyhuntress/pseuds/holyhuntress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>New to the Human World, the reader, a fallen angel, seeks help in learning to blend in with the mortals around her.  And who better of a teacher than the awkward, emotionally inept angel Castiel himself?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Chance Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back! This is the second Fan Fiction I've written, and this chapter is rather short (4 pages) compared to my last one (Seriously? Clowns?). That Sam x Reader got 300 hits and 28 kudos, like seriously?! I know that's probably the norm around here, but I would still like to thank you all sincerely nonetheless. Right, back to this Fan Fiction; I plan on making each chapter after this at least around +8 pages, hopefully more. Comments, feedback, suggestions, kudos, all that good stuff would be greatly appreciated!

_Beeeeeep!_

You had about three seconds to react to the abrupt, unfamiliar sound as blinding white lights swallowed you whole. Unsure of what was going on, you reacted on basic instinct and dove to your left, narrowly getting hit by what you assumed was an automobile.

You had just _finally_ made it out of the very vast forest you’d crash landed in after the fall from Heaven when you stumbled onto the pavement of a road. You hadn’t even been given a chance to think about where you were when the car suddenly turned a corner and nearly hit you.

The sound of tires squealing filled the air directly after you had flung yourself into what you sourly realized was a muddy ditch. Lifting your head to glare at whoever had the audacity to try and run you down, you were met with the sight of a man slamming his car door shut and quickly making his way towards you.

“I’m _so_ sorry! I— you just came out of nowhere, and— I—I can’t believe I almost _hit_ you! Are you okay?!”

‘ _Humans_ ,’ you thought as you pushed yourself up into a standing position, brushing your muddied hands off on your gray slacks. However, not just mud came off; streaks of blood dirtied your pants as well. Noticing this, you flipped your hands over, palms facing upwards, and sure enough shallow cuts decorated your palms. It didn’t hurt, no, but to humans it must seem like you were in a great deal of pain.

It seemed you weren’t the only one to notice your injury. Panicking still, the guy continued his concerned rambling. “Oh my God! I gotta get you to the nearest hospital now! Crap, but what if I get arrested? You won’t press charges, will you?!”

Honestly, you weren’t even that upset now about almost getting hit. His genuine panic and concern for you was enough proof that it was an accident. However, at the use of your Father’s name used in vain, your hands had clenched into fists, causing blood to leak through your fingers. ‘ _Humans. Nonetheless, I must forgive him for such an offense_.’ Sighing lightly, you unclenched your fists, and met the stranger’s gaze.

“I would very much appreciate a… ride to the nearest town, if you can.” Judging by the expression on his face, it seemed he would do just about anything for you at the moment. He offered a sharp nod before hastily making his way back to his car, you trailing at a steady pace behind him.

Once at the car, however, you didn’t know what to do, so you simply stood in front of the passenger’s door and stared at the handle. Misreading the action for one of incapability rather than ignorance, the man quickly made his way over to your side and opened the door for you. You offered him a small smile in gratitude before slipping into the car seat, gingerly pulling the car door shut after he had gotten into his seat and done so with his. You mimicked him buckling up as well, but you were unsure about why you would need to do so.

“We’re about thirty minutes away from Rexford, Idaho. Here,” at this he leaned across you and opened up a compartment in front of your legs and pulled out a roll of gauze—you knew so after he explained what it was at your questioning glance. “Wrap your hands with this so it’ll stop the bleeding.”

You did as he said to clumsily, once again unsure if you were doing it properly. ‘ _I am going to need help in dealing with human related things if I am stuck here indefinitely_.’

The stranger broke you out of your thoughts as he started the car’s engine and began the drive to Rexford. “So… what on Earth were you doing all the way out here at night? There’s no hiking trails or campsites nearby. Did you get lost?” Upon seeing your questioning glance, he backtracked a bit. “Sorry, I’m Keith. What’s your name?”

“(Y/N),” you answered calmly, diverting your gaze out your window to look at the blur of different shades of black and gray that you guessed were trees. You assumed that in daylight, they would be a beautiful sight of greens and browns, but at the moment they were nothing but dull and lifeless to the eyes. “I was… lost, yes. I had just made it out of the forest when you appeared out of nowhere.”

The man—Keith—chuckled sheepishly whilst rubbing the back up his neck in… embarrassment? But what would he be embarrassed about? “Eheh… yeah, I’m really sorry about that. It’s just that I wasn’t exactly expecting anyone to be out here in the middle of nowhere at midnight. Kinda weird, don’t’cha think?” At your silence, he sighed quietly before lowering his hand back onto the steering wheel. “Right, not very chatty.”

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence; you not seeing a point in small talk while his was in awkwardness. Finally, however, a rainbow of electric store signs came into view, signifying your arrival to what you assumed was Rexford. During the car ride, you had used some of your grace to heal the cuts on your hands that were still concealed by the gauze, but made sure not to waste too much; you were, after all, still recovering from the fall.

Another two minutes passed before Keith parked on the side of the road, looking around as if he were lost himself. Noticing your questioning glance for the umpteenth time, he explained, “I’m not from around here, just stop by every now and again.”

Nodding, you replied, “That is alright. I shall just go ask those who live here about… where I can go to stay the night. Thank you for the ride.” Without waiting for his reply, you opened your door, swung your legs to the side, and got out of the car.

“Hey!” You leaned down a tad to look at him, curious about what he would need now. “Um… I just… are you sure you’re alright? I mean, I nearly hit you and all.”

“Of course, I just need to rest now if that is alright.” Taking his slow nod as an okay, you pulled back and shut the car door. Without a single glance back, you turned and were met with a giant, fluorescent sign that read Gas-N-Sip. The lights in the store were still on, and you noticed a man still inside. ‘ _He shall do_.’ And with that, you left your spot by Keith’s car and walked into the store.

The twinkling of a bell filled your ears upon opening the door to the Gas-N-Sip, which caused a small smile to curl you lips at the familiar, pleasant sound. You were also greeted by the sight of a plethora of isles filled with human snacks, as well as bright lights compared to the darkness outside.

“Just a moment,” a gravely, somehow familiar voice called to you from behind the counter, his back facing you. (Y/E/C) eyes narrowed slightly in concentration and curiosity; you _knew_ that voice, but how?   The sound of heels clicking across that floor filled that air as you made your way over to said counter. Once you were standing in front of the counter, you took the opportunity to study the man. He had curly brown locks, with a sun-kissed tan from what you could tell. Looking closer, you saw a faint scar running down from the base of his hair and down past his blue vest. ‘ _Funny, I know someone with a scar in the exact same spot, and the exact same appearance…_ ’ Suddenly, realization dawned on you.

You knew who that voice belonged to. You’d only encountered him a few times, but you had looked up to him, still did if you were being honest. The scar on his neck was given to him by one of your brothers; you knew this because you were the one fighting beside the Seraph when it happened. With that memory fresh in your mind, your eyes widened slowly as you breathed out his name in question.

“Castiel?”

The tensing in his shoulders and the pause of his movements were what gave you confirmation that this really was the rebellious Angel, but you were still surprised nonetheless when he slowly, cautiously turned towards you, and were met with bright sapphire orbs that were widened in what you realized was fear. That fear, however, slowly evaporated as recognition suddenly dawned over his face.

“(Y/N)…?”


	2. Forgive and Forget

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you this would get longer! 3,200+ words and a whole 9 pages!

Brilliant blue bore into (Y/E/C) as the two of you simply stared in shock at one another. All you could think about was that _Castiel was alive_. Last you’d heard, he had died protecting the Winchesters, the way you just _knew_ he was going to go out. But lo and behold, here was your ex-commander standing right in front of you.

Apparently, your staring had long since exceeded his, as a warm hand suddenly touched your upper arm, snapping you out of your thoughts.

“(Y/N)… you survived the fall? You are unharmed?” Castiel asked, worry and concern coloring his words. After you slowly nodded your head once, the worry crinkling his face smoothed into relief. “I am glad.”

Before you knew what was happening, Castiel removed his hand from your arm, left from his place behind the counter to walk over to you, and wrapped you up into his arms, holding you closely against him. You could feel warmth suddenly bloom across your cheeks, as well as everywhere his vessel touched yours, and you were almost as shocked to your response to the… whatever it was he was doing to the action itself.

After a few awkward seconds had passed and his arms hadn’t released you, you hesitantly asked, “Um… Castiel… why are you squeezing me with your body?”

This earned you a deep chuckle from the Angel, which you felt more than you heard. “It is called a hug. Humans do it when they are happy.” You simply replied with a small “Oh,” and after a few more seconds, you very hesitantly wrapped your smaller, leaner arms around him.

Castiel was the first to pull back from the hug—you weren’t sure what the appropriate time to end a “hug” was—but placed his hands on both your shoulders, keeping you close. A small smile graced his lips, you noticed, but was suddenly replaced by a nervous frown. “You… aren’t going to attack me, are you?” he suddenly asked, causing your vessel’s eyebrows to shoot up in confusion and surprise.

“Of course not! Why would I do such a thing to a friend?” you lightly exclaimed, pulling back slightly, which in turn caused the Seraph’s hands to fall away from your shoulders.

Castiel suddenly exhaled a defeated sigh, and a tired expression washed over his face. “It seems that our brothers and sisters are still angry with what I’ve done… which is understandable.”

Furrowing your eyebrows in confusion, you shifted a bit closer to Castiel and mimicked his previous actions by gently placing your own petite hand on his upper arm. “Castiel—“

“Please, just call me Cas, I do not wish for you to sound so formal with me,” he suddenly cut in.

“Cas…” you started again, testing the shortened version of his name. Tilting your head to the side ever so slightly, you continued; “Why have they not forgiven you? Was it not our Father that said to forgive thy neighbor?”

Another chuckle erupted from Cas’ throat as a warm smile once again curled the corners of his lips; he was relieved that he wasn’t the only one who hadn’t lost trust and faith in your Father. “Of course, it is just that not all of us still actually listen to what He has instructed. I am glad to see that you still do, though.” ‘ _It **would** be her of all of us to still keep faith…_ ’ Castiel thought to himself fondly.

You nodded once to show you understood, because Father knows, _you did_ , but you diverted your thoughtful gaze to the ground, removing your hand from Cas’ arm whilst doing so. After a few seconds had passed though, you lifted your (Y/E/C) orbs back up to meet his own cerulean ones. “Wait, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be out looking for a way back to Heaven?” You suddenly asked as the thought dawned on you.

Your brows furrowed once more as horribly concealed sadness flickered across the other fallen angel’s face. Sighing once again, Castiel explained, “Well… it’s just that… I do not exactly _have_ my grace anymore. You see… I suppose you could say that…” he trailed off, but after meeting your gaze, which he quickly realized was a mistake, he let out a long sigh, met your gaze with a determined one, and finished. “I am to blame for all of the Angels falling from Heaven. My grace was stolen from me, and in turn Metatron used it to close the gates of Heaven on all of us.”

Confusion, surprise, sadness, concern, anger, and… something else you couldn’t identify swirled within you at hearing Cas’ confession. It seemed that they also flickered across your face, because Castiel suddenly looked away in sadness and shame, and waited for your outburst. However… it never came.

He dared not to meet your eyes again, for now he remembered how utterly _terrible_ he felt for causing all the angels to fall, for causing _you_ to fall. So when a smaller frame suddenly pulled his larger one into a hug, he felt nothing but confusion. Looking down, he saw the top of your (Y/H/C) head and your slender arms lightly wrapped around his chest. It was only when your muffled voice telling him that he was supposed to hug you back did he finally snap out of his confusion and wrap his own arms around you. He didn’t know why you weren’t angry with him, because _he_ was angry with himself, but he gladly accepted your comfort. If only he could forgive himself as easily as you did…

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

After an hour or so had passed with you and Castiel catching up somewhat—he said he couldn’t close the store for another hour—the two of you exited the Gas-N-Sip side by side.

“Um… (Y/N)…. There is something else I forgot to inform you of…” Cas began, looking somewhat sheepish. At your questioning glance, he continued; “I do not actually have a place to stay. I know you do not require sleep, but I do with the absence of my grace.”

A thoughtful expression crossed your face as you began to ponder how sleeping would feel like. However, still ignorant of this world and how its customs were, you met Castiel’s gaze and asked if he knew of any place that he could sleep. 

“Well,” he started, a hint a sadness flickering in his eyes for just a fraction of a second, “there is _one_ place I know of, but it seems I am unwelcome there now.”

(Y/E/C) eyes narrowed in distaste that someone would not welcome your friend; you asked, “Is this place where the Winchesters are?” Receiving only a small nod in confirmation from the raven-haired man, you continued. “Where are they located at this very moment?”

Castiel glanced at you with a confused look as to why that piece of information would matter, but he told you nonetheless. “They are in Lebanon, Kansas, just on the border of the city limits. However, I do not see how this is of imp—” You did not give him the chance to finish as you raised your vessel’s pointer and middle finger to Cas’ forehead, and, after the signature whooshing feeling that came with transporting, appeared just outside of said town with the ex-Angel.

“(Y/N)? Why are we here? I just told you tha—”

Once again, you cut him off, this time with a snap. “If those ungrateful buffoons do not think that after everything you have sacrificed for them, that you are unworthy of their time, then _I_ will have a talk with _them_. Now, where is this place?”

‘ _Ah, there’s the (Y/N) I fought alongside of_ ,’ Cas thought humorously to himself.   Sighing for the umpteenth time that night, he replied, “I believe it is just a few minutes down this road. There should be a black vehicle parked in front of an underground bunker.”

Nodding in acknowledgement, you began the walk down the pavement with purpose to your steps. Castiel, you could hear, was trailing just a bit behind you, but was following you nonetheless. You ran through any argument that might pop up in your head to occupy the short time that it would take to get to their Bunker, but after a few minutes had passed, a black vehicle came into view.

“Is that the Winchesters’ car?”

“Yes, but just, um… be careful. They will most likely attack you when they spot you.”

You heard his words, you did, but the simple fact that puny insects such as themselves thought that _they_ could take on you was just preposterous. So really, when you arrived at the desired location and kicked their door in—with the help of some grace of course—you were already underestimating the two Hunters of legend.

“Dean and Samuel Winchester! Get out here at once!” you shouted as you bypassed the kicked-in door and made your way down the stairs, only glancing back minutely to make sure Castiel was still following you.

Two men, one with long, brown hair and the other having shorter, lighter brown hair, ran into what you recognized was a library from opposite doors, guns raised and poised.

“Who, or what, the Hell are you?!” spat the shorter of the two men, who was already analyzing everything he could about you.

Scoffing, you retorted, “Well I can assure you guns are utterly useless with me.”

All this got you was a click from the taller one’s shotgun, signifying he was about to test that statement.

“Stop!” The gravely, deep voice you knew as Castiel’s suddenly shattered all the tension in the large, vintage room. The shorter of the two’s eyes flickered up to Cas’ form, and relief washed over his face.

“Dammit, Cas. Thought we were under attack. What the Hell are you even doing here?” the man grumbled, who had gotten back into his tensed pose, one that people used when they were about to fight.

“I—” Cas began, only to be cut off by your quip at the man you assumed was Dean Winchester.

“I believe he has the right to be here after all he has done for your ungrateful self.”

All your snap got was a condescending bark from Dean. “Well, well, another firecracker of an Angel. Joy…” he mumbled the last part, but you still heard it nonetheless.

“I do not see how having an angry Angel around is a joyful thing,” you spat back. Your lack of knowledge about sarcasm was apparent to the two Hunters, and the taller of the two let a small chuckle past his lips as he lowered his gun.

“Ignore him,” the taller one, you guessed was Sam, said as he set the weapon on a table nearby and cautiously made his way over to you as if you were a wounded animal that might flee. “I’m Sam, who’re you?”

(Y/E/C) eyes locked onto his larger frame, making sure didn’t have an Angel Blade or anything that could kill you hidden. Once you were sure it was alright, you lowered your guard a tad. “I am (Y/N), a friend of Casti— Cas’. I found him after the fall.”

Sam nodded, and a warm smile curled his lips once Cas had made his way down the rest of the stairs and stood next to you. “Well it’s nice to meet you, (Y/N). Sorry we kinda got off on the wrong foot.”

‘ _Wrong foot? What is with human lingo, it makes no sense_ ,’ you thought to yourself. “It is alright, Cas warned me that you two might try to attack me. I suppose it is only fair considering your line of… business.”

Sam let another low chuckle escape past his lips. ‘ _It’s just like Cas all over again; she’s so formal and ignorant of the human world_ ,’ he thought to himself humorously. “Yeah, we just gotta be careful. So, um, not to sound rude or anything, but why are you two here?”

Dean had set his gun on the table next to Sam’s by now, and had taken his place next to his brother. “Weren’t you busy with a job or something, Cas?” he added.

Cas tilted his head to the side slightly, his eyes squinted in confusion at Dean. “Yes, but…” he stopped suddenly, you weren’t sure why, and picked up again. “It is just that I have no place to stay now, and neither does (Y/N), so I was wondering if it was possible if… we could stay here for a couple of nights? Only until we could find a different place, of course,” Castiel added the last part in after seeing the slightly strained look on Dean’s face. However, it wasn’t the oldest brother to answer his question.

“Yeah, of course you could, Cas. You know you’re always welcome here,” Sam replied to Castiel with a small smile, completely unaware of the tension between the Seraph and his brother. “And hey, we trust you about (Y/N); she doesn’t seem all that bad, right, Dean?”

Dean, shook his head then, seeming to rid himself of some kind of thoughts, and looked… not that pleased, you noticed. “Yeah, ‘course. Sammy’s right. Welcome to Club Work-And-No-Sleep, we hope you enjoy your stay,” he remarked jokingly with a smirk, but the joke went right over your head.

“Oh, um… thank you, both of you. I promise to not interfere with anything unless necessary,” you replied, offering the two Hunters a small smile and nod.

“As (Y/N) just said, thank you two,” Cas added.

Dean had apparently had enough, as he turned and began making his way towards the door he had entered through earlier. “Alright, enough chick-flickiness. Cas, you know your way around, pick a room for you and (Y/N). Sammy, I think we’ve worked enough for the night. I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow,” and with that, Dean left the library, the sound of fading heavy footfalls echoing off the halls.

You were confused as to his abrupt departure, but truthfully, you were confused about a lot of things humans did. While you were distracted by your own thoughts, you missed Sam telling Cas and you good night, as well as him leaving. It was only when Castiel lightly touched your elbow did you snap out of it.

You must have jumped slightly because Cas had an apologetic look on his face. “I’m sorry, it was just that it would be good for us to go to our rooms now.” You simply nodded, not really sure what to say at the moment.

You simply followed Cas out of the library and down a series of hallways, but he stopped in the third one you’d walked through. “This is your room, (Y/N),” he said, gesturing towards the door he stood in front of once he’d stopped. “I know you do not require sleep, but I found that reading a book or listening to music is a good way to pass the time. Tomorrow, we can try to find you some sort of device to play music, but until then, I believe you are stuck with reading.”

Truthfully, you’d always wanted to read. The only book you’ve ever known was the Bible, and for the longest time you’d been curious about what humans found so fascinating about their own stories. You were also curious about their music styles; you rather enjoyed the soft, melodic pieces up in Heaven, so you figured you’d like humans’ as well.

You slowly nodded your head and offered Castiel a small, grateful smile. “Thank you for… everything. I know my sudden appearance must have been rather… bad timing, but I thank you nonetheless. Also… if you do not find it too much, could you possibly, um… Well…” you trailed off then, unsure if what you were asking was too much.

Cas offered you a small, reassuring smile of his own, and gently prompted you to keep going. Taking a deep breath, you shifted nervously, avoided eye contact with the other Angel, and tried again. “Would you be willing to teach me the customs of humans? I believe it would be very helpful if I am to be stuck here indefinitely.”

Several awkward, silent seconds ticked by, and you began to wonder if what you’d asked was too much.

A deep chuckle suddenly emitted from Cas, which had you sharply raising your gaze to his in confusion as to what he found was humorous. With bright sapphire locked with (Y/E/C), you silently took that time to study his face. He had a rather sleepy look on his face, but you assumed that was because he hadn’t gotten to sleep yet. His lips were curled in a small smile that brought up a weird feeling in your vessel’s stomach region, and his eyes shown with warmth, humor, drowsiness, and something else you couldn’t quite identify. But other than that, nothing was really different from when you’d last seen him.

“Of course I’ll help you learn the traditions of humans, but I must warn you that I myself am still learning such things, so we may have to ask Dean and Sam to help, if that is alright?”

You couldn’t help it; you never had the freedom to express your feelings up in Heaven because it was a sign of weakness, but now? Now you were free do whatever you wanted, so with that in mind, for the first time ever you expressed an emotion outright other than anger. Smiling brightly, you nodded your head vigorously twice before throwing your arms around Cas’ neck. “Yes! Thank you, Castiel!”

To say he was shocked would be an understatement; Cas knew that deep down you were an emotional Angel, which was tough when you weren’t really supposed to wear your feelings on your sleeves up in Heaven. But obviously, you realized that this was your one chance at expressing how you felt. So, with that thought in mind, Cas chuckled once more before wrapping his own arms around you, pulling you closer against him. “Of course, (Y/N), that is what friends do for one another.”

Your smile brightened even more once you felt his own arms embrace you, but after a few more seconds, you pulled back, hoping that the hug was held for an appropriate amount of time. Nodding to Cas once, you said, “Well, I suppose I will see you tomorrow then. I hope you sleep well, Castiel. Thank you again.” And without waiting for a response, you twisted the door knob to your room—you were even more happy once you realized _you’d opened a door on your own without help_ —and entered said room, shutting the door quietly behind you. You waited by the door for a few more seconds, and once you heard the sound of footfalls moving down the hallway, you turned around and made your way over towards the array of multi-colored books on a small bookshelf by what you assumed was your bed.

Once you’d selected a book that looked rather interesting—the title read _Of Mice & Men_—you slipped your gray heels off by the door and got onto your bed, dedicating a few moments to getting comfortable since that was now a luxury, and snapped your fingers to turn on the lamp next to you. Yes, you could have just flipped the light switch on, but you were unsure of how to do so and where it was so, you took the easy way out.

Smiling slightly to yourself, you snuggled deeper into your pillows, opened your newfound book, and entered the world of fiction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gah, I'm so sorry for not posting for like two weeks! Truth be told, I got kind of distracted, and then realized I still had to type the whole next chapter. So, with that being said, please excuse any errors that pop up! I really like this chapter to be honest, especially the second half. Also, for those who didn't get what was going on, this is taking place when Gadreel is still healing Sam, and Dean kicked Cas out. That's why Sam's oblivious and Dean is tense around Cas because he knows he can't be there. I'll add more on it later, promise. Alright, thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Kudos, questions, and feedback is always appreciated! xx

**Author's Note:**

> As I stated earlier, feedback and suggestion would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, lovelies! xx


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